After racking up 132 points and outscoring their first two opponents by a combined 99 points, the USC Trojans will face the Purdue Boilermakers in West Lafayette, Indiana Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at the Ross-Ade Stadium.
Both teams are 2-0 on the season, with the Trojans edging the Boilermakers 3-1 in the series. Saturday represents the teams’ first meeting in 27 years since the 1998 Pigskin Classic.
As USC prepares to make the trip to West Lafayette, the Trojans understand that Saturday’s game represents more for the team than just their Big Ten opener. It’s an opportunity to prove that the defensive improvements and offensive firepower that have marked their early season success can translate to the road.
The Trojans went winless in Big Ten road games during their inaugural conference season, making Saturday’s matchup a crucial opportunity to shift that narrative.
“Focus has been a key theme heading into this weekend,” redshirt senior linebacker Eric Gentry said. “Focusing on every rep, being in the moment, being happy where we’re at.”
In his final season, Gentry is motivated by the opportunity to face opponents he missed during his injury-shortened 2024 campaign.
“I want to show not just what I can do but what the whole team is able to do,” Gentry said. “People say we can’t win road games so it’s gonna be fun to be able to play in a road game.”
A win over the Boilermakers would surely dispel that notion and be a crucial step toward USC establishing itself as a legitimate Big Ten contender.
The parallels between these programs add layers of intrigue to tomorrow’s matchup. Purdue senior wide receiver Michael Jackson III played at USC from 2021-2023. Boilermakers offensive coordinator Josh Henson served in the same role for the Trojans and coached the offensive line from 2022-2024. Namely, Purdue head coach Barry Odom was the head coach at UNLV where USC quarterback Jayden Maiava began his collegiate career.
As a redshirt freshman in 2023, Maiava led the program to its most wins since 1984 and its first-ever appearance in the Mountain West Championship, ultimately being named 2023 Mountain West Freshman of the Year.
In just over five quarters as starting quarterback for the Trojans, Maiava has put up 707 passing yards and six touchdowns–100 more than any other Big Ten QB. Per Pro Football Focus, Maiava ranks No.1 in the Power Four in NFL Passer Rating (155.3).
How Maiava’s masterclass will translate in Big Ten play against his former coach will be interesting to watch. Odom, a defensive specialist, is most notably known for turning around the Memphis Tigers’ defensive unit during his tenure there.
In 2012 he became the defensive coordinator for a Tigers team that was ranked 128th in total defense. Three years later, Memphis ranked 28th and his squad finished the regular season ranked fifth in scoring defense (17.1) and 22nd in total defense (343.3).
While he is in just his first year with the Boilermakers, defense will more than likely be a key aspect of his game plan.
“He’s a really good defensive mind and you can see that with what they’re doing now with their staff and their players and what they’ve done here in the first couple weeks of the season and at UNLV last year.,” USC head coach Lincoln Riley said. “They do a really good job and it looks like his group has taken to his style quickly.”
Riley also mentioned the similarity of their respective systems, highlighting that Saturday will be an important measuring stick in terms of how his team can compete in the Big Ten.
Big Ten competition will not be any less challenging than USC’s first time around, facing teams like Oregon, Illinois and Nebraska on the road and Michigan at home.
But the Trojans boast some of the conference’s best players at their positions including Maiava, wide receiver duo sophomore Makai Lemon and junior Ja’Kobi Lane, and running backs redshirt senior Eli Sanders and junior Waymond Jordan. All five have scored at least one touchdown through USC’s first two games.
As the clock winds down, the Trojans must understand that Saturday’s game represents more than just their Big Ten opener, but a chance to flip the narrative.